Ukrainian pilot Savchenko resumes hunger strike

Ukrainian pilot Nadia Savchenko detained in Russia on murder charges that Kiev says are politically motivated has resumed her hunger strike "till the end", saying she's determined to return to homeland even as "cargo 200".

Savchenko first went on hunger strike in December to protest against her arrest last year for alleged involvement in an attack that killed two Russian journalists on eastern Ukraine's frontlines, where she had enlisted as a volunteer in one of the battalions fighting pro-Russian rebels.

Savchenko broke off the more-than-80-day hunger protest earlier this month after her health nearly collapsed but again resumed it as her basic demands had not been met, according to Savchenko’s lawyer Mark Feigin.

Savchenko has become a symbol of resistance in Ukraine, where she has been elected to parliament. She has been listed as a political prisoner by Russia's most prominent rights group, Memorial, as well as by Amnesty International.